Hi from a newbie

[Aqua Dude]

Hi there all.

I am completely new to hunting and have had no to little time behind the sights of a REAL hunting rifle. Have shot many a bird with my air rifle. I've been out with a mate a couple times whilst hunting kudu with his .308 rifle. (Don't ask me which make etc cause I'm completely clueless). I've had some target practice with his rifle and know basic safety regulations when handling fire arms, but the bug has now officially bitten after numerous compliments from my friend saying that I'm quite a good shot/marksman, whatever you call it.

I would just like to get an idea which make rifles I should and shouldn't waste my time in obtaining from some of the experts of the forum. A .308 bolt action is what I'm looking for as this is what I've learnt to shoot with and I feel comfortable with how the rifle sits in my shoulder and I feel confident in its ability.Its powerful enough to take down small to medium game. On average how much would I have to "sweet talk" the minister of financial affairs (my wife) into to get an average to decent rifle with scope kit? I'd even be prepared to settle for a second hand rifle as a start.

I am aware that a person would have to complete the neccesary proficiency tests to acquire your license to hold such a rifle.

Much appreciated.

Regards

Ewald

 

[Wolverine67]

Hi and welcome to the site.
I couldnt see where you are from, but any reasonible prized bolt action would serve you fine as a newbie rifle. I use a Remington 700 ADL, wich is a very good rifle for the money. Another ones are Browning, Ruger, Howa, Savage. A bit up in prize (and quality?) are Sako, Tikka, and so on..
I would go for a cheap rifle and spend the buck on a good scope.

 

[Bobpuckett]

Welcome to AH Ewald! I'm with Wolverine 67 on this one Trond has listed a good list to start looking at The Remington 700 is a real good choice I was just reading an artical on the SF Swat team they used the 308 with a 18 inch barrel, the barrel is a little heaver then your normal stock barrels and a 300 Win Mag 20 inch barrel and were shooting 2 inch groups a 700 yds but any of the guns Trond listed will do great at a fare price.

 

[35bore]

Welcome to the forum,,, The 308 is a fantastic caliber. go get ya some in Africa.

 

[Divernhunter]

I own Rem rifles and they are fine. That said I would buy a Tikka T-3 Lite as first choice. Next would be a Savage with the accra-trigger then a Weatherby Vanguard(or Howa).
The facts are that the last 4 rifles I bought are, in order, Savage(varmit 204Ruger), Weatherby Vanguard(257Weatherby), and 2 Tikka T-3 Lites in 7mm-08 and 6.5X55.
If you shoot a tikka you will want one and will not desire a Rem/Win/Ruger /Browning/CZ etc.
The Tikka is warr to shoot 1" or better at 100 yards. The Tikka has a smooth bolt and handling qualities as well as being light. The Savage and Weatherby will do 1.5" or better. The choice of 308Win is an excellent one. Use Good 150-165gr bullets and you will be set for just about anything other than DG. Put a 3X9X40 or 3.5X10X40 Non-AO Leupold scope on it and you are set for life and will be able to hand it down to someone after you pass away and they will be good.

 

[Cliffy]

Divernhunter +1 Good advice on the 308 and Welcome to the best forum on the internet. Lots of those here will be very helpful for all your questions.

 

[BRICKBURN]

Good luck on your first hunting expedition. The selection of a decent rifle.
Tell us what you end up with and what you hunt with it.

 

[Diamondhitch]

I will tell you what I tell everyone, figure out how much you are willing to spend on a complete outfit and buy as good of a scope and mounts as you can afford and buy whatever rifle you can with the money you have left. A scope that is unreliable (EVER goes off sight) will be far more inaccurate than the worst shooing rifle out there. I spent the first few years of my hunting career, as I am sure many on here have, sighting in guns over and over because of cheap scopes, dont make that mistake.

 

[AfricaHunting.com]

Welcome to AH Ewald!

 

[Nyati]

Welcome to the forum, Ewald !

 

[RickB]

Welcome to AH!